Life at the Center of the Energy Crisis: A Technologist's Search for a Black Swan describes the story of the author's work and struggles in the field of energy research. The author's experience in the field spans from work with Admiral Rickover and the Nuclear Navy to research with NASA designing propulsion for spacecraft to travel to Mars. The book provides insights into the differences between nuclear research done during the Cold War by the two superpowers, and offers a commentary on th...

The exciton mechanism of high-Tc superconductivity in copper oxides was initially proposed by Prof. J. Bardeen. His insight is largely shared by another luminary in superconductivity, Prof. V. L. Ginzburg. The main author of the book, Dr. Nie Luo, was motivated by their insights to give a geometrical explanation to the excitonic Coulomb interaction and has developed a unique formalism to understand and predict physical properties of high-Tc superconductors. This work is s...

Rediscovering the role God designed for the church in mission is a critical issue facing the missions movement today. That role is to glorify God by planting churches among every tongue, tribe, and nation. Planting churches amid unreached peoplesis a complex process. It calls forth every ministry gift and the contribution of every believer. Imagine a businessman, a construction worker, a schoolteacher, and an engineer all working together to support the development of a local church amongs...

How to achieve unlimited, safe, clean and low-cost energy by laser- or beam-driven inertial nuclear fusion has preoccupied all winners of the Edward Teller Medal since its inception in 1991. This book presents their findings, meeting discussions, and personal insights from Edward Teller himself. Expect discussion of important advances anticipated in the future such as multi-billion dollar fusion research projects (NIF), and new schemes such as the petawatt-picosecond laser-plasma interacti...

This book covers the history of lasers with nuclear pumping (Nuclear Pumped Lasers, NPLs). This book showcases the most important results and stages of NPL development in The Russian Federal Nuclear Center (VNIIEF) as well as other Russian and international laboratories, including laboratories in the United States. The basic science and technology behind NPLs along with potential applications are covered throughout the book.As the first comprehensive discussion of NPLs, students, r...

This book provides readers with an introductory understanding of Inertial Electrostatic Confinement (IEC), a type of fusion meant to retain plasma using an electrostatic field. IEC provides a unique approach for plasma confinement, as it offers a number of spin-off applications, such as a small neutron source for Neutron Activity Analysis (NAA), that all work towards creating fusion power. The IEC has been identified in recent times as an ideal fusion power unit because of its abi...